In general, computing systems can execute in various modes of operation. Some examples of different computing modes include protected mode, unprotected mode, supervisor mode, user mode, kernel mode, etc. In a protected mode environment, the operating system limits the set of functions of the computing system available to processes running on the system. For example, the operating system may not allow protected mode processes to access the networking capabilities of the system. However, it may be desirable to access functions of a computing system running in protected mode that are not usually available to protected mode processes.